Planned expansion - Fisherman files suit against federal authority: LNG site
A local fisherman has filed a lawsuit against a federal authority in connection with the controversial liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal on the coast of Rügen. The complaint to the Higher Administrative Court in Greifswald (OVG) is directed against the deepening of the harbor access road, which also plays a role in the planned LNG terminal there, the fisherman's lawyer announced on Friday. The Federal Directorate-General for Waterways and Shipping (GDWS) had approved the project. The OVG confirmed receipt of the complaint.
"We fishermen were completely ignored in the application process for the LNG terminal. That's why I now feel compelled to take legal action," fisherman Jürgen Kuse was quoted as saying. He is the fifth generation to fish off Binz, i.e. in the vicinity of the terminal being built. An urgent application has also been submitted to stop ongoing work in the port.
According to his lawyer, he sees procedural errors in the approval process and insufficient consideration of the interests of fishermen. The planned dredging work and the dumping of dredged material would harm fish stocks.
The head of the Thünen Institute of Baltic Sea Fisheries, Christopher Zimmermann, had recently warned of the effects of the dumping of dredged material on herring, which are already under pressure.
The fact that work is to continue in January and February in the Greifswald Bodden, which is considered to be a herring nursery, despite the upcoming herring spawning season, has also recently led to fierce criticism. After the connection pipeline for the LNG terminal has been laid, the seabed is to be restored here later than originally planned. Approval is still pending. Critics are calling for the work to be halted by mid-May.
According to the German government, the Rügen LNG terminal should be ready for operation this winter. It considers this necessary with reference to energy supply security. Critics speak of unneeded overcapacity and risks for the environment and tourism. One of the loudest critics is the municipality of Binz. Jürgen Kuse is also their spokesperson.
Procedure for deepening the harbor access
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- The fisherman argues that the federal authority's approval process for the LNG terminal's harbor access expansion in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern's Rügen coast overlooked the environmental impact on local fisheries, specifically harm to fish stocks due to planned dredging and dumping of dredged material.
- The German government supports the Rügen LNG terminal's projected winter operation, citing energy supply security, while critics claim that the terminal represents unnecessary overcapacity and poses risks to the environment and tourism, including Binz, an outspoken critic.
- Greifswald, the nearest major city to Rügen, is home to the Higher Administrative Court, where fisherman Jürgen Kuse's lawsuit against the LNG terminal's harbor access expansion process is being heard.
- As a fifth-generation fisherman in the Binz area, Kuse has filed an urgent application to halt ongoing port work during the upcoming herring spawning season, contending that the dredging and material disposal could harm herring stocks already under pressure in the Greifswald Bodden, a recognized herring nursery.
- Liquefied natural gas (LNG) energy sources are a contentious issue, with concerns about environmental impact, specifically the implications of LNG terminal constructions and their associated processes on surrounding ecosystems and coastal communities, like Binz in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
Source: www.stern.de
